KANNUR: In a shrill attack on BJP and Narendra Modi , Union Minister Jairam Ramesh today said it was an 'insult" to Sardar Patel that people "who had been brought up in ideologies that inspired assassination of Mahatma Gandhi" were claiming his legacy. "I think this is an insult to Sardar Patel and to his legacy for such an individual to make the claim. I think with his ambition to be prime minister of the country, the BJP's prime ministerial candidate...

NEW DELHI: Trinamool Congress today attacked the government for ignoring the name of leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru from the President's address to Parliament and said naming of schemes after BJP leaders who do not enjoy national stature was inappropriate. Raising the issue in the Lok Sabha during the discussion on the Motion of Thanks on the President's address, TMC leader Sougata Roy demanded a scheme to be...

PUDUCHERRY: Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy today paid homage at the statue of Mahatma Gandhi on the occasion of the death anniversary of the Father of the Nation. Speaker V Sabapathy, Ministers, legislators, officials and freedom fighters were among those who paid floral tributes at the statue. Patriotic songs dearest to the Mahatma were also presented by a team of teachers of Puducherry government run Bharathiar Palkalaikoodam . Two minutes silence was observed at the statue by all those...

ROURKELA/ORISSA: Mahatma Gandhi is revered all over the country but people in a sleepy little village off Sambalpur town in Orissa worship his idol in a temple. The temple at Bhatra village attracts people of all religions and castes who offer their obeisance to the idol of the Father of the Nation sitting under the Tricolour. Pramod Kumar, president of the Gandhi temple development committee, said the temple symbolises communal amity among the people in western Orissa.

JAIPUR: BJP and RSS have finally understood the value of Mahatma Gandhi which is why Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invoking his principles for "political gains", former chief minister Ashok Gehlot said today. "PM Narendra Modi has to invoke Gandhiji to do politics. After 65 years, BJP and RSS have now understood the value of Gandhi and therefore, they have started calling him a 'Mahapurush' (greatman)," alleged Gehlot while speaking to...

NEW DELHI: Mahatma Gandhi inspires US Presidential hopeful Barack Obama and he flaunts it by having a portrait of India's Father of the Nation at his Senate office. The Democratic Party candidate has spoken highly about Gandhi, saying the apostle of peace reminds him about the real message of life. "Throughout my life, I have always looked to Mahatma Gandhi as an inspiration, because he embodies the kind of transformational change that can be made when ordinary people...

NEW DELHI: Always open to ideas, Mahatma Gandhi was a clever auctioneer of his autographs for raising funds for the Congress, says Jawaharlal Nehru's niece Chandralekha Mehta. "Unlike the pictures of the serious father of the nation spinning the charkha that adorn public buildings, Gandhiji had a ready smile, twinkling eyes and a smooth complexion. He was a formidable walker and a very clever auctioneer of his autographs, which he sold to the highest bidder to collect money for the...

BODH GAYA: Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama was today presented the Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Peace and Reconciliation on the fourth day of the ten-day Kalachakra initiations here. The grand daughter of Mahatma Gandhi, Ila Gandhi, presented the award, instituted in 2003, to the Dalai Lama at the Kalachakra ground here. Ila Gandhi, who is based in South Africa, is chairman of the Gandhi Development Trust , which gives the award. In his acceptance...

NEW DELHI: To commemorate the first and only address by Mahatma Gandhi on All India Radio (AIR) on this day in 1947, the broadcaster today held a prayer meeting at the Broadcasting House here. Marking Gandhi's AIR address, November 12 is observed as Public Service Broadcasting Day . AIR officials said that the Father of the Nation had stepped inside the studios of Broadcasting House on November 12 in the year India gained its Independence to address refugees...

JOHANNESBURG: Ela Gandhi, a granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi, has been honoured with an award for her lifetime contribution to the freedom struggle in South Africa. Gandhi was one of three Indian-origin South Africans lauded among many veterans of Umkhonto we Sizwe (Spear of the Nation), which was the armed struggle wing of the African National Congress. The others were Sunny Singh and Mac Maharaj. Former Umkhonto we Sizwe members were incorporated into the South African...

LONDON: A charity set up in the UK to raise funds for a statue of Mahatma Gandhi to be installed at Parliament Square in London this year today appointed four new trustees. Infosys co-founder Narayana Murthy's UK-based entrepreneur daughter Akshata Murthy is joined by financial expert Carsten Jorgensen , former UK attorney-general Lord Peter Goldsmith and NRI hotelier Vivek Chadha, the Gandhi Statue Memorial Trust announced here. NRI economist ...

GUNTUR: Tamil Nadu Governor K Rosaiah cancelled his programme to unveil the statue of Mahatma Gandhi here due to "protocol violations" in invitation card, which displayed his large picture above the mugshots of the Father of the Nation and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Rosaiah, who is the only political appointee from UPA rule to remain on Governor's post after the BJP came to power at the Centre, said despite his...

WASHINGTON: Mahatma Gandhi's legacy is an inspiration in dealing with intolerance in the United States and around the world, the White House said today, a day after President Barack Obama stated that acts of intolerance experienced by religious faiths in India in the past few years would have shocked the peace icon. "Mahatma Gandhi's legacy is one we look to for inspiration in dealing with intolerance in the United States and around the world," Mark Stroh ,...

WASHINGTON: US President Barack Obama on Thursday condemned those who seek to use religion as a rationale for carrying out violence around the world, and referred to India where he said in past years religious faiths at times have been targetted due to their heritage and beliefs. Singling out groups such as ISIS, which he termed a "death cult", Obama said religious bigotry was not limited to a nation or geography. Recalling his Delhi trip last...

NEW DELHI: The Christian community, which has been critical of the BJP government following "attacks" on churches, today welcomed US President Barack Obama's comments on religious intolerance in India, saying he spoke about the reality and pro-active action was required to ensure social harmony. Director and Spokesperson of Delhi Catholic Archdiocese Father Dominic said the US President remark on religious intolerance was a major issue...

LONDON: Plans to erect a bronze statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Parliament Square here have received an official clearance. Westminster City Council granted planning permission for the sculpture commemorating the Father of the Nation, which will be placed close to the statue of Nelson Mandela, the anti-apartheid revolutionary. Britain's Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg , and UK Cabinet ministers William Hague and George Osborne had announced plans for the memorial...

WASHINGTON: Internet search giant Google paid tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on Friday on the 140th anniversary of his birth, replacing the 'G' in its colorful logo with his picture. Clicking on the logo takes a reader to links in the Google search engine to websites about Gandhi, who was born Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi on October 2, 1869 and was assassinated on January 30, 1948. Google frequently changes the colorful logo on its famously sparse home page to mark holidays,...

MELBOURNE: Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy of non- violence and simple life-style is more relevant today than ever before as Islamophobia , terrorism and climate change stand in the way of peace, his granddaughter has said. 74-year-old Ela Gandhi , a peace activist and former South African MP, said ideals of her grandfather held key to solving some of the modern society's biggest problems, including the cycle of extremist violence and environmental destruction. ...

LONDON: A 26-year-old UK-based NRI hotelier has donated 100,000 pounds for the statue of Mahatma Gandhi planned for Parliament Square in London, becoming the youngest donor. Vivek Chadha , director of Nine Hospitality Limited and a hotel owner, residential developer and commercial investor in UK real estate, is a self-confessed follower of Gandhi. He graduated as a civil engineer in 2010 from University College London, also the alma...